Defiance
by Burning Frost
Summary: Who I was is dead. There is no Saotome Ranma . There never was. All there was was an idiot, too naive and stupid to see how easy it was for him to lose everything. Saotome's dead. I'm all that's left. And now... There's hell to pay. Chapter 2 UP!
1. Kinezono Ranma

_**A/N**_:

**Requesting BETA READERS**

Ranma multi-crossover. Tenchi Muyo, Burn Up, Sailor Moon, Ah my Goddess, Mahou Sensei Negima, Love Hina and/or others. Also I'm going by the Tenchi Muyo manga, which according to wikipedia is non-canon, but sadly the manga is all I own…

_**Disclaimer**_: All titles and characters belong to their respective creators (Rumiko Takahashi, Hitoshi Okuda, Naoko Takeuchi, Kosuke Fujishima, and Ken Akamatsu respectively) and I own nothing except the plot and maybe some OC's.

*~*~*~*~*

Kinezono Ranma

*~*~*~*~*

"Confidence is ignorance. If ya feel cocky, it's because you don't know all there is ta know. Take it from someone with experience."

-Ranma after defeating a particularly smug werewolf.

*~*~*~*~*

Kinezono Ranma was brooding.

Strange, how that worked out. Two years ago, it was something he wouldn't have been caught dead doing. Then again, two years ago life had been different. He'd been a different person then, a different being altogether. Back then, he'd been a martial artist, the best of his generation, _hell_, probably the best in the world.

He'd also been naive; one might even go so far as to say that he'd been stupid. Blackmail was a regular occurrence in his life, along with rivals fiancées, a perverted old grandmaster, a three-hundred year old ghoul and the occasional monster-of-the-week. Chaos was something that had been naturally associated with him back then: brooding, not so much… Brooding required _thinking_, something no one ever thought he was capable of outside of a fight…

Then again he doubted that anyone wanted to him to think; after all, he couldn't blindly follow someone into the abyss if he could comprehend the situation he was in, now could he?

Keep him stupid, and keep him compliant.

He wasn't stupid anymore. Hadn't been that way for a while. He knew the truths of his life. He knew who he was. He'd watched himself in the mirror and saw his very soul. He'd faced up to everything that he'd become, everything that he'd done, everything that he had been and everything that he could be…

And then he saw that he had a choice.

For the first time in his life he was no longer a slave to some self imposed sense of honour. He no longer had to keep the standard of being a man amongst men. He didn't have to be someone else's scapegoat or watchdog. He could be whatever the hell he wanted… and frankly, that had scared the hell out of him.

He'd always been "guided" before; always had his life pushed in a certain direction… He'd always believed that he'd end up doing whatever it was that made his father, his mother, and his "friends" proud… but that revelation had shattered all pretence of what his life had been.

It was, however, strange that he'd never really had to make the choice whether to change or not… It had been made for him… He'd have to change, one way or the other. There were no other options. So… he'd made his choice… but every now and again he caught himself wondering and reliving certain events. He tried not to think about them, but as one of his mentors had said before, "It was the past that makes the present man," and he found himself hard pressed not to dwell upon the events that had led him here.

Too much pain, too much deception and far too much sacrifices had been made to get him here… but in the end he actually had people who gave a crap about him, no matter what he did and that was worth something…

Didn't stop him from brooding though. That was part of who he was now, and it would be a cold day in hell before he changed it…

*~*~*~*~*

_Azubu Juuban_

_Juuban Municipal High_

Haruna Sakurada had once dreamed of being a high class educator. She dreamed of leading students onwards and forwards into the world watching as they surpassed all expectations and became the foundations for a new and brighter future. She dreamed of having them receive awards for their glory and revelling in the fact that it was she who had brought them there… instead she'd gotten youma attacks and Usagi.

Who was late.

AGAIN!

How the girl had made it to High School was a mystery. How she had done it without maturing a single iota, even more so. Her writing was sloppy, her attendance riddled with holes and her grade point average almost nonexistent… and yet for whatever reason, she still made it from grade to grade to grade… The girl was either a master of masks, or she was the best damn cheater in the entirety of Japan… and when one thought of it neither one seemed to be a plausible reason… after all this was Usagi…

Haruna sighed. Today was just going to be one of those days wasn't it? A late Usagi, a massive migraine setting in and two new students thrown in just for good measure… great…

"Are you alright Haruna?"

"Of course I am Meioh-san."

_Dammit! _Haruna knew she hadn't faltered, she knew that her smile (fake though it was) was still plastered on her face, she knew her tone hadn't in any way changed; so then why? Why did this woman, barely out of University, always know? Better yet, how had she made it to vice-principal in a matter of less than a month? Granted, she did a much better job than their last, but still.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure Meioh-san."

Oh yes, she was sure… Sure that the woman before her wasn't all she seemed...

It wasn't so much that Meioh was the youngest vice-principal in the school's history, or the fact that the she seemed, at times, omnipresent, that made Haruna dislike her. Rather, it was Meioh's smile that irked the hell out of her. It was the kind of condescending smile that a parent might give a child. The kind of smile that said 'I know far more than you could ever begin to learn'. The kind of smile that Haruna vowed she would one day wipe off of Meioh's face… She didn't know when, or even how, but she knew she would…

Some day…

"Well then, if you are sure, perhaps you can take the new students to their classes. They've been waiting outside for the last six minutes."

Haruna blinked… She wasn't that good… was she?

She opened the office door and took a glance into the hall.

Apparently she was… but damned if she gave Meioh the satisfaction of knowing that she had, _once again,_ 1upped her colleague.

"Well, so they are. I'll just bring them to class then."

_Some day Meioh._

_Some day._

Antonym. By definition it was "a word having a meaning opposite to that of another word". Haruna had learned that particular word when she was in the fourth grade, and now in one of her many thirty-three years of life, she'd discovered that some words had personifications. Granted she'd always thought of Usagi as being the personification of the word "stupid", but now looking at the new students, she could see what a word personified really was… Hell, the more she looked at them, the more they seemed to fit the bill.

Tall - Short.

Male – Female

Gakuran – Sailor

Black - Blond

And so on and so forth. Really, Haruna could count at least ten differences right off the bat, but none unnerved her so much as their eyes… Despite the fact that both of them had the most amazingly blue eyes she had ever seen, they were still the biggest difference that they had. While one looked bright, innocent and filled with the curiosity of youth, the other's were old, hard, cold and cynical… A simple look at those eyes would tell the greatest difference, and to imagine, it was the only thing about them that seemed even remotely similar.

Even as they walked to their destination, they stayed synchronised, moving perfectly in time with one another, almost as though to enhance the differences that made them. Then again, with the way they moved, Haruna wouldn't be surprised if that's exactly what they were doing. She shook her head slowly… it was going to be a very interesting year…

"Stand."

"Bow."

Ah the usual morning monotony, possibly the only time Haruna ever gained the full respect she deserved. She loved it, revelled in it, basked in its glory… Some might say that she took too much pleasure in the little things that life had to offer. She would tell them all to sod off. She only enjoyed this because for those few precious moments she had what she always wanted… control…

"Sit."

But as with all things her control had to end. Too bad, so sad. Time to introduce the new hellions.

"Ohayou gozaimasu minna-san."

_Fake smile_

"Today we have some new students joining us."

_Superb Fake smile_

"Could you please step forward and tell us about yourselves?"

_Brilliantly fake smile_

Damn she was getting good at those. She should have gone into acting rather than teaching.

"Ohyaou minna-san. My name is MacDougal Sarah. I am sixteen years old, and I hope to follow in the footsteps of my father and become an archaeologist. Yoroshiku onegaimasu."

As expected, it was the cheerful blond that stepped forward first. In a way Haruna was reminded of Usagi. Blond and bubbly, yet it was there that the compassion ended. This girl, Sarah, was graceful; resoundingly so. She moved like a dancer. Every action had a purpose and every purpose was made beautiful. She could have been a radiant sun – could have, except for the aura of black that assaulted her from the side.

Her opposite was glaring, and for once in her life Haruna was glad that she wasn't the centre of attention. To say that the glare was intimidating was like saying that youma were harmful- it just didn't cut it. The English phrase "if looks could kill" definitely applied here. Which made Haruna wonder… was the girl really not feeling the pressure of that aura, or was she just that oblivious.

Sarah smiled as she bowed, her countenance never wavering, as she turned back to face them.

"Aduladora."

It was a word, spoken so softly, so faintly that Haruna had to strain to hear it. She barely made it out, and as she did she realised how much better off she was not hearing it in the first place. His voice was cold… as in arctic cold, and Haruna couldn't suppress the shudder that went through her spine.

Sarah, on the other hand, took it in stride, countering in kind.

"Idiota," she said with a grin, "ahora bese el extremo, consiga lejos con el asesinato más adelante."

Now, though she may not have been the best linguist out there and her spanish may have been severely limited, but she definitely knew the word for "murder" when she heard it. Oh yeah, this one was nothing like Usagi… speaking of which maybe the odango-atama wasn't so bad after all. At least she didn't know _**how**_ to speak in a gaijin language to plot someone's death.

"Go ahead baka-kun, it's your turn."

The glare intensified exponentially. _How the heck did that girl stand it?_

He stepped forward, slowly, deliberately, taking every motion into account as he redirected his glare against the class. Several of them flinched instantly. Others managed to hold their own for a few seconds, but they were all shifting uncomfortably in the span of a minute.

'Possibly the longest minute of their lives' Haruna mused silently.

One day she would get him to teach her that.

"Che," he scoffed, more from habit than anything else, "Kinezono Ranma desu… sumimasen."

A strange greeting if she ever heard one. He'd just met these people, although he had glared most of them to soiling themselves, but other than that what did he possibly have to be sorry about?

"WAAHHH! I'M LATE!"

And there came Usagi, and only fifteen minutes past the hour, seems she was getting up earlier, or maybe she was running faster… Nope she was definitely running faster… without stopping… _Why the hell wasn't she stopping?!_

"Ranma move!"

If he had heard Haruna at all, he didn't acknowledge it. Instead he stayed silent, unmoving, at least until –

"AHH! LOOK OUT!!!"

Then he became a blur, and Usagi became airborne.

Perception was a strange thing. For many of the students time had sped up, and they struggled to keep up with what had happened. For Haruna time had slowed to an almost slug like pace. She'd seen when Ranma's foot lashed out, when Usagi's own feet were pushed off the earth and when Ranma caught her bridal style, completely unfazed by the entire thing.

She blinked.

What the-?

How could he-?

Kami-sama that boy was fast…

"A-arigato," Usagi said with a blush, "Ano, who are you?"

Ranma looked at her, not a glare this time, but a look; a knowing look. He shook his head.

"Kinezono Ranma," he said, just before he unceremoniously dropped her to the ground, "and like I said before sumimasen."

Haruna had thought it before, and now she was thinking it again.

_It's going to be a very interesting year…_

*~*~*~*~*

**A/N**

**Sumimasen-** sorry, familiar form.

**Kami-sama**- God

**Aduladora-** Flatterer

**Ahora bese el extremo, consiga lejos con el asesinato más adelante**- Kiss butt now, commit murder later (very crude translation on my part)

**Yoroshiku onegaimasu-** Please take care of me.

Massive thanks to all who read, even more to the two guys who gave me reviews, it was much necessary and appreciated.

**NOTE:** Some of you may be asking questions, I HAVE ANSWERS. I will reveal everything piece by piece in accordance with the plot. Too much at one time and I will ruin it. So please bear with the out of character Ranma without explanation for the while please.

Also, I think I have Sarah's character down, considering how she first acted when she met Narusegawa, but if you have complaints please don't hesitate to say something. But do factor in that Sarah is sixteen years old at this point, and Ranma would be eighteen going on nineteen.

Why he's in the same grade as Sarah?

Explained next chapter.

**REVIEW PLEASE!**

**I WORKED HARD ON THIS DAMMIT!**


	2. School Daze Part 1

**A/N:** Thanks to everyone who reviewed. It was your reviews that keep this story going. Thanks especially to Calamity-Queen of Cordite, whose help was integral in making this story happen.

To Kaji no Ikari, I got no idea of the overall "when" the events occur. Supposedly it's two and a half years after Saffron for Ranma and after Galaxia for Sailor Moon. Love Hina, it's after Keitaro and Naru's wedding, and for Negima I don't even know… I'm writing from the top of my head and hoping I come out with something good.

_**Disclaimer: **_Look to the first chapter… Also Mai-hime was directed by Masakazu Obara and written by Hirouki Yoshino and authored by Hajime Yatate, Noboru Kimura and Kenetsu Sato. Takes place after the series.

*~*~*~*~*

School Daze

Part 1

*~*~*~*~*

"Look I ain't sure how I got here, but I swear to you I ain't some kind of pervert."

- Ranma after being accidentally teleported to the Hinata onsen.

*~*~*~*~*

The blade moved, fast, free and with deadly accuracy. It knew where to strike, knew what vitals would equal a quick death and with the obvious strength behind it, there would be no survival. Ranma moved, legs pumping far harder than they ever had before. Kasumi screamed and Ranma was there, blade caught firmly between her palms.

"Are ya alright Kasumi?"

"Ranma -How? -Why?"

"Happosai." Ranma spat.

Damn him! Damn the freak and need for vengeance. It wasn't just Ranma this time; it was the entire Nerima ward. Summoning demons. Even Ranma wasn't that ignorant to believe that they would obey his commands. Now the damn things were on a rampage, and everyone was involved. Even Kasumi… Ranma could understand her sentiments. Things like this didn't happen to Kasumi. Things like this occurred to him, and the martial artists around him. Kasumi was the one who remained behind with the first-aid kit at the ready. Things like this happening to her? Impossible to even think it… until now…

The blade twisted, and Ranma followed through with the movement. Off balance the creature barely had time to move before a lightning fast kick connected with its side. For Ranma there was no such thing as mercy for this creature. It had attacked Kasumi, the epitome of all that was right with the world. It would die, no two ways about it.

"Moko Takabisha!"

The blade went airborne, and the creature hit the earth.

"Katchu Tenshin Amaguriken!"

Ranma was upon it in a second, fists moving at the speed of sound. No respite. No hesitation. Make sure that the thing never tried to hurt anyone, ever again…

_It was a demon._

_It was a being of sheer evil. _

_It was born to destroy. _

_It tried to hurt Kasumi. _

Every one of those thoughts pounded through Ranma's head, and yet it seemed like nothing more than pointless justification for an action he knew was wrong… He had killed… again… Only this time it was in spades. How many of the creatures had run amok in Furinkan? How many had fallen before Ranma's fists? How many students had gotten hurt because he wasn't there fast enough?

Sayuri…

Yuka…

They survived, but they would never look the same…

And Akane… He could still recall the look on her face. The anger, the pain, and most of all the hate, all directed towards him. She blamed him for their pain, him, for their suffering, she probably blamed him for the entire attack… Why? Why did it always come back to him? It wasn't his fault that time… He'd done everything to protect Akane, everything to save her… after she was safe, then he'd went back for the others… That was how it went. The fathers would have been proud that he took the initiative to save his fiancée first… so then why did it end up like this?

"Ranma-chan…?"

Ranma shook himself from his revere. He would deal with this later. Right now he had other things to deal with.

"Yer alright ain't ya Kasumi?" he asked tentatively.

It was a pointless question. She definitely wasn't alright. Gone was the calm demeanour that personified her, instead her eyes were wild and filled with panic.

"It's alright Kasumi. They ain't gonna get ya or nothin'."

That was the right thing to say right? It wasn't the wrong thing to say, so it had to be right. Right? Kami-sama he hoped so.

"T-thank you. Ranma…"

Okay, so it wasn't wrong, but it wasn't completely right either. Try again-

"RANMA!"

Kami, she was screaming!

Why was she screaming?

He didn't do nothing wrong, so why-

It was then that he began to realise how blurry her image had become. Then that he began to feel the pain that assaulted him. He looked down. Four bladed fingers jutting out from the space below his –er – her breasts.

Ranma could have laughed. Of all the times to become gender specific…

It hurt…

Badly…

But not as much as it was supposed to…

That was bad…

When had he hit the floor exactly? He couldn't remember…

_Stop Kasumi… _

_If you hold me like that you'll stain your clothes…_

It was only later did Ranma find out that the demons themselves were no different that Happosai. Nothing more than vengeful little bastards. Separating its own hand from its body for the sole reason of destroying him.

The doctors had said that he would never walk again…

Ranma stared out the window at the well kept soccer field of his new High School. The shit had hit the fan only two years ago… and yet those years felt so much longer… He'd changed since then. Attitude, knowledge, goals, ambitions, everything was different now… Hard to believe that Kinezono Ranma and Saotome Ranma had ever been the same person, really. Then again it was even harder to believe that Saotome Ranma had ever once been considered a cripple… Kinezono Ranma was anything but…

"Frickin' memories," he muttered.

Too many of those things. Far, far too many. And now they were coming back to haunt him. Must be the stupid High School environment. He needed a break from conscious thought. A break from them, and their stupidity. Dammit all, if he didn't want to sleep right now… Wait… why wasn't he? It wasn't as though anyone would miss him right? Besides he'd get all the notes from Sarah later. No big. Now all he had to do was rest his head on the desk and-

"Kinezono!"

Ranma raised his head from the desk. Slowly, gently, and directed a raging inferno glare at the teacher, who dared call him. It was met head on, and matched. A challenge if Ranma ever saw one.

"Well Mr. Kinezono, now that I have your attention perhaps you'd like to demonstrate your mastery of advanced mathematics by solving this equation on the board."

A challenge it was.

He looked at the board, his mind processing the information. Division, multiplication, subtraction, addition one after the other his mind worked. Then he paused… and scoffed.

"Anything the matter Mr. Kinezono?"

He was smug. The old bakayarou in front of him thought he had won.

_Che!_

Now how to make him realise who he was dealing with.

"Well?"

"Four over pie."

"As I thought. If your going to-" the old man paused, "What did you say?"

"Four over pie." Ranma repeated.

There was a long silence.

Followed by a short silence.

Followed by another long silence.

"That answer is cor-… It is correct."

The smug smile was gone now, replaced by a very disturbed grimace.

_Ranma 1 _

_Arrogant old men 0. _

"But in future Mr. Kinezono please pay attention."

"Hn."

The temptation was astounding, and it took everything in his power not to give in to his more base desires. Insult the man, his teaching and everything he'd ever accomplished, make him lose respect in front of his students peers, and family, destroy his reputation and ruin all that he was… So very hard to resist… and yet… if he did so the ramifications of said actions would always come back to bite him in the ass. It was probably one of the only things Saotome and Kinezono ever had in common. Granted, Kinezono wasn't afraid of being hounded by the old man, or his family, the school or even the Board of Education, but if Haruka ever found out-

Ranma shuddered. If Haruka ever found out… It was yet another difference between Saotome and Kinezono. Saotome never admitted fear. Kinezono had met fear itself, and knew her by name; Noriyasu Haruka, and much like all who had met her before pride came a far second. Her wrath was not to be experienced - ever - .

Ranma took a breath and once again turned his eyes to the window. No way was he going to sleep now. Too much adrenaline. Haruka always did have that effect on his fight or flight response, well flight response anyway. Fight always seemed to take the back burner wherever she was concerned.

And thus another of the few things Kinezono and Saotome had in common. Fight seemed to have all the brains…

Sarah was a person of many faces.

She knew how to get what she wanted. She knew how to act in the face of adversity. She knew how to turn the most stable of men into quivering idiots with a single look. But most importantly, she knew exactly how to get on someone's good side. Strange how Ranma didn't seem to get it. You'd think after two years of gallivanting (_sounds like something some old person would say_) around the planet he'd have picked up something by now?! But no. Ranma was Ranma, and by all accounts, he was as dense as a rock… Then again that might actually be an insult to rocks. Perhaps his density could be compared more to a-

"If you're going to insult me at least do it out loud."

Sarah blinked. Okay, maybe was dense, but even he had his moments.

"And how exactly do you know that I'm insulting you?" she countered.

"Your face." He murmured the reply.

"My face?"

"Yeah, your face."

"Care to elaborate?"

"If you don't know, I ain't gonna tell ya."

"Bakayarou."

"Che."

Normalcy. How Sarah enjoyed it. Explosions, aliens, youma and terrorist attacks were all great, although decidedly dangerous; but it was the quiet times where she and Ranma could relax and insult one another without fear of being shot, that were the greatest in her mind. Lunchtime on a school roof, nobody but the two of them. Ranma sitting lazily against the door frame, her leaning against it; A perfect moment if ever she saw one.

"Yeah," she whispered, "perfect."

"What is?" Ranma asked.

"The fact that you actually shut up for once." She replied haughtily.

"Tomboy."

"Girlyman."

"Teme."

Sarah grinned. It was nice. No idea why it was nice, but it was. Just one of those things, she guessed. Maybe it was because Ranma was just as two-faced as she was on occasion, maybe it was the martial arts or maybe it was because he'd defied the laws of reality to save her, even when she hadn't been his friend… Who knew? She loved what this was, _whatever it was_, and she wasn't about to ruin it with stupid questions.

She cast him another gaze, smirking slightly as he pulled a rather beat up packet of cigarettes from his pocket. The lighter came next, and he yanked the soon to be lit cancer stick out with his teeth. He barely looked up as he passed the carton her way.

"Thanks." She smiled.

"Hn." He acknowledged.

She took her own, passing the carton back when she was done.

"Pass the light."

"Use your ki.

"Cheap bastard."

"I already buy the cigarettes, get you own damn light."

This time it was he who was grinning. It only served to make her own smile ever wider. He was loving this just as much as she was. She concentrated, and watched in satisfaction as a large ball of pure life energy glowed in her left hand. She lit up and took a long drag. As a child she'd never really understood the "why" of smoking. Now in her late teens, and influenced by two chain-smoking parents, she finally too much understood, and she relished the fact. Life's guilty pleasures… she loved them so…

"You do know this ain't workin' with the good girl image you're trying to pull right?"

"News flash Kinezono, no one's watching."

"Yet…"

Why that word seemed to echo ominously, she didn't know. Nor did she want to. The fact that it echoed in open space was enough to haunt her for long enough. The fact that it was connected to so many connotations was far too much for her to handle at once. If her good girl image was ruined then she couldn't watch the shock as people finally discovered what a hell raiser she really was. She would have to answer for all the mysterious "accidents" around her. She wouldn't be able to get away with anything. She'd actually have to work past the first impression to wrap the teachers around her little finger.

She took another drag.

All was right with the world.

"Be-DA!"

Childish, but effective, besides he'd almost had her with that last one.

"Che." He scoffed.

Why did that always seem to work for him?

"You know, they're going to come looking for us." Sarah remarked.

"I know." Ranma replied stoically.

"So…" Sarah put out her cigarette, "Let's go."

A pause.

"You go," Ranma said softly.

"Oh come on," Sarah urged, "Just for a few minutes. Greet your fan girls or something."

"No." came the stubborn reply.

"Ranma-"

"I said NO!"

She glared at him, a pointless gesture, she knew better than anyone, but it served its purpose. He was glaring right back.

"Why not?"

It was more of a command than a question, and one she knew that he would answer.

"I don't got no reason to."

Ranma's glare faltered. At any other point in time she would have considered the notion ridiculous. But she knew him. She'd fought with him, fought against him, and lived with him long enough to know when she'd hit a sore spot, and what a sore spot she had hit. She shook her head. He had to hear it. As much as he didn't want to, and as much as she didn't want to tell him… Her parents had tried subtlety, something they should have known didn't work against Ranma, now it was up to her to spell it out.

"You do know that this is why they refused to let you test out of high school?"

"I know."

Sarah blanched. He knew?! Here she was resigning herself to the fact that her second best friend was going to hate her for life when she told him; only to find out that he already knew… Well that was certainly unexpected…

"If you know, then why aren't you even trying?"

Ranma looked at her- not a glare- but an honest to goodness look.

"I had friends back in Nerima-" he began.

"They weren't your friends Ranma." She interrupted, "They were-"

"All I had… And I lived with them for a real long time. You're worth a thousand what they were. I don't need no one else."

Apparently Kinezono was just full of surprises today. Not only was he showing that he had some from of matter between the ears, but he'd also proven that he had more emotional composition than a rock… Who knew?

"You're insulting me again."

Okay, that was getting freaky.

"One day I'm going to figure out how you do that."

Ranma passed her the carton of cigarettes in response, this time with the lighter.

Sarah grinned broadly.

*~*~*~*~*

Minako was seething. _**HIM! **_Of all people _**HIM! **_Her luck just had to be that bad didn't it. Ranma, how she loathed that name. She doubted anyone could ever hate that _thing _ more than she did. The embarrassment, the pain, what he had put her through she would never forgive. She would make him pay. Oh how she would make him pay.

_Saotome Ranma! Prepare for my vengeance!_

"Waah! The new student is mean!"

_Sigh. _Trust Usagi to ruin a perfectly good setting of evil and nefarious plotting. She didn't even have to become Sailor Moon this time either.

"I don't know. He managed to show you exactly why you should stop coming late, so he can't be all bad."

"WAAH! You're so mean Rei!"

"I know him."

A silence descended upon the tightly knit group at Haruka's words. It held for about a second.

"YOU KNOW HIM?!"

"Wow Haruka and here I thought you were-"

"No fair! You already have Michiru."

"Can you introduce me to him?"

"OI!"

It was times like these when she wondered about her team mates. They knew her, and yet when she just happened to know a guy, they still questioned her orientation. Granted, the new student did possess a strangely feminine grace that was vaguely attractive, but still…

"I just meant that I've seen him before! But I don't remember him as Kinezono."

"That's because his name was Saotome before." Minako spat.

The venom in her voice went unnoticed.

"Saotome?! As in Saotome Ranma?!"

Rage left her as incredulity hit. Never before had she believed that Haruka, of all people, would ever get so animated about a man… then again, this was Saotome Ranma. He'd probably done something to ruin her life too.

_Maybe she had a partner in crime?_

"I can't believe he's at our school! He's like the freakin' kami of martial arts!"

_Then again maybe not…_

"I gotta meet him. Did anyone see where he went?"

For her part Minako remained silent. There was just something about Michiru's death glare…

"I saw him heading to the rooftop with that new girl." Usagi chirped.

_Honestly, give the girl some food and a manga…_

Haruka took off, and they, being the pretty magical girls they were, followed… It would give Minako the time she needed. Time to brood, time to plot, and time to exact. Saotome would never know what hit him.

*~*~*~*~*

Ranma sneezed.

"Don't tell me the great master of martial arts is getting a cold?"

"Che." Ranma scoffed, "It's probably someone out to get me… again."

"That hasn't happened in a while huh?" Sarah chuckled.

Ranma said nothing. He hated rivals. He hated rivalry. It only ended in bloodshed and tears. Rivals did have their purpose however, one of which being that they kept him on his toes, but other than that, they were a phenomenal pain in the ass… Heh… Phenomenal… picking up big words… must be hanging around Narusegawa too much…

"You know I meant to ask you something…"

"What?"

"How did you solve that equation?"

Ranma paused. Tell her the truth or lie? Was there really anything to gain by lying?

"Kinezono?"

Nah. Sides, he was a horrible liar anyway.

"I cheated."

Sarah looked at him incredulously, her mouth agape.

"How?"

Ranma shrugged.

"Blue hair, two desks to the left," Ranma smirked, " She was mouthing the answer."

*~*~*~*~*

**A/N**

This was actually half-finished four days ago, I just couldn't decide where to end it. Anyway School Daze part two sometime soon.

Read and Review please...

Please...

Come on if you've read this far you got no excuse not to review.


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